According to a modern etymowogy, de name of Azerbaijan derives from dat of Atropates,[27][28] a Persian[29][30][31]satrap under de Achaemenid Empire, who was water reinstated as de satrap of Media under Awexander de Great.[32][33] The originaw etymowogy of dis name is dought to have its roots in de once-dominant Zoroastrianism. In de Avesta, Frawardin Yasht ("Hymn to de Guardian Angews"), dere is a mention of âterepâtahe ashaonô fravashîm ýazamaide, which witerawwy transwates from Avestan as "we worship de fravashi of de howy Atropatene."[34] The name "Atropates" itsewf is de Greek transwiteration of an Owd Iranian, probabwy Median, compounded name wif de meaning "Protected by de (Howy) Fire" or "The Land of de (Howy) Fire".[35] The Greek name was mentioned by Diodorus Sicuwus and Strabo. Over de span of miwwennia de name evowved to Āturpātākān (Middwe Persian) den to Ādharbādhagān, Ādharbāyagān, Āzarbāydjān (New Persian) and present-day Azerbaijan.

Earwy settwements incwuded de Scydians in de 9f century BC.[35] Fowwowing de Scydians, Iranian Medes came to dominate de area to de souf of de Aras.[33] The Medes forged a vast empire between 900–700 BC, which was integrated into de Achaemenid Empire around 550 BC. The area was conqwered by de Achaemenids weading to de spread of Zoroastrianism.[45] Later it became part of Awexander de Great's Empire and its successor, de Seweucid Empire. During dis period, Zoroastrianism spread in de Caucasus and Atropatene. Caucasian Awbanians, de originaw inhabitants of nordeastern Azerbaijan, ruwed dat area from around de 4f century BC, and estabwished an independent kingdom.

The Sasanian Empire turned Caucasian Awbania into a vassaw state in 252, whiwe King Urnayr officiawwy adopted Christianity as de state rewigion in de 4f century. Despite Sassanid ruwe, Awbania remained an entity in de region untiw de 9f century, whiwe fuwwy subordinate to Sassanid Iran, and retained its monarchy. Despite being one of de chief vassaws of de Sasanian emperor, de Awbanian king had onwy a sembwance of audority, and de Sasanian marzban (miwitary governor) hewd most civiw, rewigious, and miwitary audority.

The wocaw dynasty of de Shirvanshahs became a vassaw state of Timur's Empire, and assisted him in his war wif de ruwer of de Gowden HordeTokhtamysh. Fowwowing Timur's deaf, two independent and rivaw states emerged: Kara Koyunwu and Aq Qoyunwu. The Shirvanshahs returned, maintaining a high degree of autonomy as wocaw ruwers and vassaws from 861, for numerous centuries to come. In 1501, de Safavid dynasty of Iran subdued de Shirvanshahs, and gained its possessions. In de course of de next century, de Safavids converted de formerwy Sunni popuwation to Shia Iswam,[54][55][56] as dey did wif de popuwation in what is modern-day Iran, uh-hah-hah-hah.[57] The Safavids awwowed de Shirvanshahs to remain in power, under Safavid suzerainty, untiw 1538, when Safavid king Tahmasp I (r. 1524-1576) compwetewy deposed dem, and made de area into de Safavid province of Shirvan. The Sunni Ottomans briefwy managed to occupy parts of present-day Azerbaijan as a resuwt of de Ottoman-Safavid War of 1578-1590; by de earwy 17f century, dey were ousted by Safavid Iranian ruwer Abbas I (r. 1588-1629). In de wake of de demise of de Safavid Empire, Baku and its environs were briefwy occupied by de Russians as a conseqwence of de Russo-Persian War of 1722-1723. Despite brief intermissions such as dese by Safavid Iran's neighboring rivaws, de wand of what is today Azerbaijan remained under Iranian ruwe from de earwiest advent of de Safavids up to de course of de 19f century.

After de Safavids, de area was ruwed by de Iranian Afsharid dynasty. After de deaf of Nader Shah (r. 1736-1747), many of his former subjects capitawized on de eruption of instabiwity. Numerous sewf-ruwing khanates wif various forms of autonomy[58][59][60][61][62] emerged in de area. These ruwers of dese khanates were directwy rewated to de ruwing dynasties of Iran, and were vassaws and subjects of de Iranian shah.[63] The khanates exercised controw over deir affairs via internationaw trade routes between Centraw Asia and de West.[64]

Thereafter, de area was under de successive ruwe of de Iranian Zands and Qajars.[65] From de wate 18f century, Imperiaw Russia switched to a more aggressive geo-powiticaw stance towards its two neighbors and rivaws to de souf, namewy Iran and de Ottoman Empire.[66] Russia now activewy tried to gain possession of de Caucasus region which was, for de most part, in de hands of Iran, uh-hah-hah-hah.[67] In 1804, de Russians invaded and sacked de Iranian town of Ganja, sparking de Russo-Persian War of 1804-1813.[68] Miwitariwy superior, de Russians ended de Russo-Persian War of 1804-1813 wif a victory.

Fowwowing Qajar Iran's woss in de 1804–1813 war, it was forced to concede suzerainty over most of de khanates, awong wif Georgia and Dagestan to de Russian Empire, per de Treaty of Guwistan.[69]

The area to de norf of de river Aras, amongst which territory wies de contemporary Repubwic of Azerbaijan, was Iranian territory untiw it was occupied by Russia in de 19f century.[6][70][71][72][73][74] About a decade water, in viowation of de Guwistan treaty, de Russians invaded Iran's Erivan Khanate.[75][76] This sparked de finaw bout of hostiwities between de two, de Russo-Persian War of 1826-1828. The resuwting Treaty of Turkmenchay, forced Qajar Iran to cede sovereignty over de Erivan Khanate, de Nakhchivan Khanate and de remainder of de Lankaran Khanate,[69] comprising de wast parts of de soiw of de contemporary Azerbaijani Repubwic dat were stiww in Iranian hands. After incorporation of aww Caucasian territories from Iran into Russia, de new border between de two was set at de Aras River, which, upon de Soviet Union's disintegration, subseqwentwy became part of de border between Iran and de Azerbaijan Repubwic.

Qajar Iran was forced to cede its Caucasian territories to Russia in de 19f century, which dus incwuded de territory of de modern-day Azerbaijan Repubwic, whiwe as a resuwt of dat cession, de Azerbaijani ednic group is nowadays parted between two nations: Iran and Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.[77] Neverdewess, de number of ednic Azerbaijanis in Iran far outnumber dose in neighbouring Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.

By March 1920, it was obvious dat Soviet Russia wouwd attack Baku. Vwadimir Lenin said dat de invasion was justified as Soviet Russia couwd not survive widout Baku's oiw.[84][85] Independent Azerbaijan wasted onwy 23 monds untiw de Bowshevik11f Soviet Red Army invaded it, estabwishing de Azerbaijan SSR on 28 Apriw 1920. Awdough de buwk of de newwy formed Azerbaijani army was engaged in putting down an Armenian revowt dat had just broken out in Karabakh, Azerbaijanis did not surrender deir brief independence of 1918–20 qwickwy or easiwy. As many as 20,000 Azerbaijani sowdiers died resisting what was effectivewy a Russian reconqwest.[86]

During Worwd War II, Azerbaijan pwayed a cruciaw rowe in de strategic energy powicy of de Soviet Union, wif 80 percent of de Soviet Union's oiw on de Eastern Front being suppwied by Baku. By de Decree of de Supreme Soviet of de USSR in February 1942, de commitment of more dan 500 workers and empwoyees of de oiw industry of Azerbaijan were awarded orders and medaws. Operation Edewweiss carried out by de German Wehrmacht targeted Baku because of its importance as de energy (petroweum) dynamo of de USSR.[6] A fiff of aww Azerbaijanis fought in de Second Worwd War from 1941 to 1945. Approximatewy 681,000 peopwe wif over 100,000 of dem women went to de front, whiwe de totaw popuwation of Azerbaijan was 3.4 miwwion at de time.[87] Some 250,000 peopwe from Azerbaijan were kiwwed on de front. More dan 130 Azerbaijanis were named Heroes of de Soviet Union. Azerbaijani Major-Generaw Azi Aswanov was twice awarded de Hero of de Soviet Union, uh-hah-hah-hah.[88]

Fowwowing de powitics of gwasnost, initiated by Mikhaiw Gorbachev, civiw unrest and ednic strife grew in various regions of de Soviet Union, incwuding Nagorno-Karabakh,[89] an autonomous region of de Azerbaijan SSR. The disturbances in Azerbaijan, in response to Moscow's indifference to awready heated confwict, resuwted in cawws for independence and secession, which cuwminated in Bwack January in Baku.[90] Later in 1990, de Supreme Counciw of de Azerbaijan SSR dropped de words "Soviet Sociawist" from de titwe, adopted de Decwaration of Sovereignty of de Azerbaijan Repubwic and restored fwag of de Azerbaijan Democratic Repubwic as de state fwag.[91] As an conseqwence of de faiwed coup dat occurred in August in Moscow, on 18 October 1991, de Supreme Counciw of Azerbaijan adopted a Decwaration of Independence which was affirmed by a nationwide referendum in December 1991, when de Soviet Union officiawwy ceased to exist on 26 December 1991.[91]

The earwy years of independence were overshadowed by de Nagorno-Karabakh war wif de ednic Armenian majority of Nagorno-Karabakh backed by Armenia.[92] By de end of hostiwities in 1994, Armenians controwwed up to 14–16 percent of Azerbaijani territory, incwuding Nagorno-Karabakh itsewf.[93][94] During de war many atrocities were committed incwuding de massacre at Mawibeywi and Gushchuwar, de Garadaghwy, Agdaban and de Khojawy massacres.[95][96] Furdermore, an estimated 30,000 peopwe had been kiwwed and more dan a miwwion peopwe had been dispwaced.[97] Four United Nations Security Counciw Resowutions (822, 853, 874, and 884) demand for "de immediate widdrawaw of aww Armenian forces from aww occupied territories of Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah."[98] Many Russians and Armenians weft Azerbaijan during de 1990s.[99] According to de 1970 census, dere were 510,000 ednic Russians and 484,000 Armenians in Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.[100]

In 1993, democraticawwy ewected president Abuwfaz Ewchibey was overdrown by a miwitary insurrection wed by Cowonew Surat Huseynov, which resuwted in de rise to power of de former weader of Soviet Azerbaijan, Heydar Awiyev.[101] In 1994, Surat Huseynov, by dat time a prime minister, attempted anoder miwitary coup against Heydar Awiyev, but Huseynov was arrested and charged wif treason, uh-hah-hah-hah.[102] A year water, in 1995, anoder coup was attempted against Awiyev, dis time by de commander of de OMON speciaw unit, Rovshan Javadov. The coup was averted, resuwting in de kiwwing of de watter and disbanding of Azerbaijan's OMON units.[103][104] At de same time, de country was tainted by rampant corruption in de governing bureaucracy.[105] In October 1998, Awiyev was reewected for a second term. Despite de much improved economy, particuwarwy wif de expwoitations of Azeri-Chirag-Guneshwi oiw fiewd and Shah Deniz gas fiewd, Awiyev's presidency was criticized due to suspected vote fraud and corruption, uh-hah-hah-hah.[106]

Geographicawwy Azerbaijan is wocated in de Souf Caucasus region of Eurasia, straddwing Western Asia and Eastern Europe. It wies between watitudes 38° and 42° N, and wongitudes 44° and 51° E. The totaw wengf of Azerbaijan's wand borders is 2,648 km (1,645 mi), of which 1,007 kiwometers are wif Armenia, 756 kiwometers wif Iran, 480 kiwometers wif Georgia, 390 kiwometers wif Russia and 15 kiwometers wif Turkey.[108] The coastwine stretches for 800 km (497 mi), and de wengf of de widest area of de Azerbaijani section of de Caspian Sea is 456 km (283 mi).[108] The territory of Azerbaijan extends 400 km (249 mi) from norf to souf, and 500 km (311 mi) from west to east.

Three physicaw features dominate Azerbaijan: de Caspian Sea, whose shorewine forms a naturaw boundary to de east; de Greater Caucasus mountain range to de norf; and de extensive fwatwands at de country's center. There are awso dree mountain ranges, de Greater and Lesser Caucasus, and de Tawysh Mountains, togeder covering approximatewy 40% of de country.[109] The highest peak of Azerbaijan is mount Bazardüzü (4,466 m), whiwe de wowest point wies in de Caspian Sea (−28 m). Nearwy hawf of aww de mud vowcanoes on Earf are concentrated in Azerbaijan, dese vowcanoes were awso among nominees for de New7Wonders of Nature.[110]

The main water sources are surface waters. However, onwy 24 of de 8,350 rivers are greater dan 100 km (62 mi) in wengf.[109] Aww de rivers drain into de Caspian Sea in de east of de country.[109] The wargest wake is Sarysu (67 km²), and de wongest river is Kur (1,515 km), which is transboundary wif Armenia. Azerbaijan's four main iswands in de Caspian Sea have a combined area of over dirty sqware kiwometers.

Since de independence of Azerbaijan in 1991, de Azerbaijani government has taken drastic measures to preserve de environment of Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah. But nationaw protection of de environment started to truwy improve after 2001 when de state budget increased due to new revenues provided by de Baku-Tbiwisi-Ceyhan pipewine. Widin four years protected areas doubwed and now make up eight percent of de country's territory. Since 2001 de government has set up seven warge reserves and awmost doubwed de sector of de budget earmarked for environmentaw protection, uh-hah-hah-hah.[111]

Azerbaijan is home to a vast variety of wandscapes. Over hawf of Azerbaijan's wand mass consists of mountain ridges, crests, yaiwas, and pwateaus which rise up to hypsometric wevews of 400–1000 meters (incwuding de Middwe and Lower wowwands), in some pwaces (Tawis, Jeyranchow-Ajinohur and Langabiz-Awat foreranges) up to 100–120 meters, and oders from 0–50 meters and up (Qobustan, Absheron). The rest of Azerbaijan's terrain consist of pwains and wowwands. Hypsometric marks widin de Caucasus region vary from about −28 meters at de Caspian Sea shorewine up to 4,466 meters (Bazardüzü peak).[112]

The formation of cwimate in Azerbaijan is infwuenced particuwarwy by cowd arcticair masses of Scandinavian anticycwone, temperate of Siberian anticycwone, and Centraw Asian anticycwone.[113] Azerbaijan's diverse wandscape affects de ways air masses enter de country.[113] The Greater Caucasus protects de country from direct infwuences of cowd air masses coming from de norf. That weads to de formation of subtropicaw cwimate on most foodiwws and pwains of de country. Meanwhiwe, pwains and foodiwws are characterized by high sowar radiation rates.

Rivers and wakes form de principaw part of de water systems of Azerbaijan, dey were formed over a wong geowogicaw timeframe and changed significantwy droughout dat period (what period wouwd dat be??). This is particuwarwy evidenced by remnants of ancient rivers found droughout de country. The country's water systems are continuawwy changing under de infwuence of naturaw forces and human introduced industriaw activities. Artificiaw rivers (canaws) and ponds are a part of Azerbaijan's water systems. In terms of water suppwy, Azerbaijan is bewow de average in de worwd wif approximatewy 100,000 cubic metres (3,531,467 cubic feet) per year of water per sqware kiwometer.[114] Aww big water reservoirs are buiwt on Kur. The hydrography of Azerbaijan basicawwy bewongs to de Caspian Sea basin.

There are 8,350 rivers of various wengds widin Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah. Onwy 24 rivers are over 100 kiwometers wong.[115] The Kura and Aras are de major rivers in Azerbaijan, dey run drough de Kura-Aras Lowwand. The rivers dat directwy fwow into de Caspian Sea, originate mainwy from de norf-eastern swope of de Major Caucasus and Tawysh Mountains and run awong de Samur–Devechi and Lankaran wowwands.

Yanar Dag, transwated as "burning mountain", is a naturaw gas fire which bwazes continuouswy on a hiwwside on de Absheron Peninsuwa on de Caspian Sea near Baku, which itsewf is known as de "wand of fire." Fwames jet out into de air from a din, porous sandstone wayer. It is a tourist attraction to visitors to de Baku area.

The Karabakh horse is de nationaw animaw of Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.

The first reports on de richness and diversity of animaw wife in Azerbaijan can be found in travew notes of Eastern travewers. Animaw carvings on architecturaw monuments, ancient rocks and stones survived up to de present times. The first information on de fwora and fauna of Azerbaijan was cowwected during de visits of naturawists to Azerbaijan in de 17f century.[109]

There are 106 species of mammaws, 97 species of fish, 363 species of birds, 10 species of amphibians and 52 species of reptiwes which have been recorded and cwassified in Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.[109] The nationaw animaw of Azerbaijan is de Karabakh horse, a mountain-steppe racing and riding horse endemic to Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah. The Karabakh horse has a reputation for its good temper, speed, ewegance and intewwigence. It is one of de owdest breeds, wif ancestry dating to de ancient worwd. However, today de horse is an endangered species.[116]

Azerbaijan's fwora consists of more dan 4,500 species of higher pwants. Due to de uniqwe cwimate in Azerbaijan, de fwora is much richer in de number of species dan de fwora of de oder repubwics of de Souf Caucasus.[117] About 67 percent of de species growing in de whowe Caucasus can be found in Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.

The structuraw formation of Azerbaijan's powiticaw system was compweted by de adoption of de new Constitution on 12 November 1995. According to Articwe 23 of de Constitution, de state symbows of de Azerbaijan Repubwic are de fwag, de coat of arms, and de nationaw andem. The state power in Azerbaijan is wimited onwy by waw for internaw issues, but for internationaw affairs is additionawwy wimited by de provisions of internationaw agreements.

The executive power is hewd by de president, who is ewected for a seven-year term by direct ewections, and de prime minister. The president is audorized to form de Cabinet, a cowwective executive body, accountabwe to bof de president and de Nationaw Assembwy. The Cabinet of Azerbaijan consists primariwy of de prime minister, his deputies, and ministers. The president does not have de right to dissowve de Nationaw Assembwy, but he has de right to veto its decisions. To override de presidentiaw veto, de parwiament must have a majority of 95 votes. The judiciaw power is vested in de Constitutionaw Court, Supreme Court, and de Economic Court. The president nominates de judges in dese courts. The European Commission for de Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) report refers to de Azerbaijani justice modew on de sewection of new judges as best practice dat refwects de particuwar features and de course of devewopment towards ensuring de independence and qwawity of de judiciary in a new democracy.[119][120]

The Security Counciw is de dewiberative body under de president, and he organizes it according to de Constitution, uh-hah-hah-hah. It was estabwished on 10 Apriw 1997. The administrative department is not a part of de president's office but manages de financiaw, technicaw and pecuniary activities of bof de president and his office.

Awdough Azerbaijan has hewd severaw ewections since regaining its independence and it has many of de formaw institutions of democracy, it remains cwassified as "not free" (on border wif "partwy free") by Freedom House.[121][122] In recent years, warge numbers of Azerbaijani journawists, bwoggers, wawyers, and human rights activists have been rounded up and jaiwed for deir criticism of President Awiyev and government audorities.[123] A resowution adopted by de European Parwiament in September 2015 described Azerbaijan as "having suffered de greatest decwine in democratic governance in aww of Eurasia over de past ten years," noting as weww dat its diawogue wif de country on human rights has "not made any substantiaw progress."[124] On 17 March 2016, de President of Azerbaijan signed a decree pardoning more dan a dozen of de persons regarded as powiticaw prisoners by some NGOs.[125] This decree was wewcomed as a positive step by de US State Department.[126] On 16 March 2017 anoder pardon decree was signed, which wed to de rewease of additionaw persons regarded as powiticaw prisoners.[127]

Azerbaijan has been harshwy criticized for bribing foreign officiaws and dipwomats in order to promote its causes abroad and wegitimize its ewections at home, a practice which has been termed as 'caviar dipwomacy'.[128][129][130][131] However, on 6 March 2017, ESISC (European Strategic Intewwigence and Security Center) pubwished a report cawwed “The Armenian Connection” where it attacked human rights NGOs and research organisations criticising human rights viowations and corruption in Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah. ESISC in dat report asserted dat "Caviar dipwomacy" report ewaborated by ESI aimed to create cwimate of suspicion based on swander to form a network of MPs dat wouwd engage in a powiticaw war against Azerbaijan, and dat de network composed of European PMs, Armenian officiaws and some NGOs: Human Rights Watch, Amnesty Internationaw, "Human Rights House Foundation", "Open Diawog, European Stabiwity Initiative, and Hewsinki Committee for Human Rights, was financed by de Soros Foundation, uh-hah-hah-hah.[132][133] According to Robert Coawson (Radio Free Europe), ESISC is a part of Baku's wobbying efforts to extend to de use of front dink tanks to shift pubwic opinion, uh-hah-hah-hah.[134] Freedom Fiwes Anawyticaw Centre said dat "The report is written in de worst traditions of audoritarian propaganda".[135]

The short-wived Azerbaijan Democratic Repubwic succeeded in estabwishing dipwomatic rewations wif six countries, sending dipwomatic representatives to Germany and Finwand.[136] The process of internationaw recognition of Azerbaijan's independence from de cowwapsing Soviet Union wasted roughwy one year. The most recent country to recognize Azerbaijan was Bahrain, on 6 November 1996.[137] Fuww dipwomatic rewations, incwuding mutuaw exchanges of missions, were first estabwished wif Turkey, Pakistan, de United States, Iran[136] and Israew.[138] Azerbaijan has pwaced a particuwar emphasis on its "speciaw rewationship" wif Turkey.[139][140]

Foreign powicy priorities of Azerbaijan incwude, first of aww, de restoration of its territoriaw integrity; ewimination of de conseqwences of occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and seven oder regions of Azerbaijan surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh;[141][142] integration into European and Euro-Atwantic structure; contribution to internationaw security; cooperation wif internationaw organizations; regionaw cooperation and biwateraw rewations; strengdening of defense capabiwity; promotion of security by domestic powicy means; strengdening of democracy; preservation of ednic and rewigious towerance; scientific, educationaw, and cuwturaw powicy and preservation of moraw vawues; economic and sociaw devewopment; enhancing internaw and border security; and migration, energy, and transportation security powicy.[141]

The Azerbaijani government, in wate 2007, stated dat de wong-standing dispute over de Armenian-occupied territory of Nagorno-Karabakh is awmost certain to spark a new war if it remains unresowved.[141] The Government is in de process of increasing its miwitary budget.[143]

Azerbaijan is an active member of internationaw coawitions fighting internationaw terrorism. Azerbaijan was one of de first countries to offer support after de September 11 attacks.[144] The country is contributing to peacekeeping efforts in Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq. Azerbaijan is an active member of NATO's Partnership for Peace program. It awso maintains good rewations wif de European Union and couwd potentiawwy one day appwy for membership.[141]

Azerbaijan is divided into 10 economic regions; 66 rayons (rayonwar, singuwar rayon) and 77 cities (şəhərwər, singuwar şəhər) of which 12 are under de direct audority of de repubwic.[145] Moreover, Azerbaijan incwudes de Autonomous Repubwic (muxtar respubwika) of Nakhchivan.[93] The President of Azerbaijan appoints de governors of dese units, whiwe de government of Nakhchivan is ewected and approved by de parwiament of Nakhchivan Autonomous Repubwic.

The history of de modern Azerbaijan army dates back to Azerbaijan Democratic Repubwic in 1918, when de Nationaw Army of de newwy formed Azerbaijan Democratic Repubwic was created on 26 June 1918.[146][147] When Azerbaijan gained independence after de dissowution of de Soviet Union, de Armed Forces of de Repubwic of Azerbaijan were created according to de Law on de Armed Forces of 9 October 1991.[148] The originaw date of de estabwishment of de short-wived Nationaw Army is cewebrated as Army Day (26 June) in today's Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.[149] As of 2002, Azerbaijan had 95,000 active personnew in its armed forces. There are awso 17,000 paramiwitary troops.[150] The armed forces have dree branches: de Land Forces, de Air Forces and de Navy. Additionawwy de armed forces embrace severaw miwitary sub-groups dat can be invowved in state defense when needed. These are de Internaw Troops of de Ministry of Internaw Affairs and de State Border Service, which incwudes de Coast Guard as weww.[93] The Azerbaijan Nationaw Guard is a furder paramiwitary force. It operates as a semi-independent entity of de Speciaw State Protection Service, an agency subordinate to de President.[151]

The defense budget of Azerbaijan for 2011 was set at US$3.1 biwwion, uh-hah-hah-hah.[153] In addition to dat, $1.36 biwwion was pwanned to be used for de needs of de defense industry, which bring up de totaw miwitary budget to 4.6 biwwion, uh-hah-hah-hah.[153][154] Azerbaijani President Iwham Awiyev said on 26 June 2011 dat de defence spending reached $3.3 biwwion dat year.[155]

Pushed up by spending and demand growf, de 2007 Q1 infwation rate reached 16.6%.[163] Nominaw incomes and mondwy wages cwimbed 29% and 25% respectivewy against dis figure, but price increases in non-oiw industry encouraged infwation, uh-hah-hah-hah.[163] Azerbaijan shows some signs of de so-cawwed "Dutch disease" because of its fast-growing energy sector, which causes infwation and makes non-energy exports more expensive.

In de earwy 2000s de chronicawwy high infwation was brought under controw. This wed to de waunch of a new currency, de new Azerbaijani manat, on 1 January 2006, to cement de economic reforms and erase de vestiges of an unstabwe economy.[164][165]

Azerbaijan wed de worwd as de top reformer in 2007/08, wif improvements on seven out of 10 indicators of reguwatory reform. Azerbaijan started operating a one-stop shop in January 2008 dat hawved de time, cost and number of procedures to start a business. Business registrations increased by 40% in de first six monds. Azerbaijan awso ewiminated de minimum woan cutoff of $1,100, more dan doubwing de number of borrowers covered by de credit registry. Awso, taxpayers can now fiwe forms and pay deir taxes onwine. Azerbaijan's extensive reforms moved it far up de ranks, from 97 to 33 in de overaww ease of doing business.

A pumping unit for de mechanicaw extraction of oiw on de outskirts of Baku.

Two-dirds of Azerbaijan is rich in oiw and naturaw gas.[169] The history of de oiw industry of Azerbaijan dates back to de ancient period. Arabian historian and travewer Ahmed Aw-Bewaruri mentioned about de economics of Absheron peninsuwa in de ancient times, oiw wands, awso, white and bwack oiw in Absheron, uh-hah-hah-hah.[170]

Azeriqaz, a sub-company of SOCAR, intends to ensure fuww gasification of de country by 2021.[172] Azerbaijan is one of de sponsors of de East–West and Norf–Souf energy transport corridors. Baku–Tbiwisi–Kars raiwway wine wiww connect de Caspian region wif Turkey, is expected to be compweted in Juwy 2017. The Trans-Anatowian Naturaw Gas Pipewine (TANAP) and Trans-Adriatic Pipewine (TAP) wiww dewiver naturaw gas from Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz gas to Turkey and Europe.

Azerbaijan has de wargest agricuwturaw basin in de region, uh-hah-hah-hah. About 54.9 percent of Azerbaijan is agricuwturaw wand.[108] At de beginning of 2007 dere were 4,755,100 hectares of utiwized agricuwturaw area.[174] In de same year de totaw wood resources counted 136 miwwion m³.[174] Azerbaijan's agricuwturaw scientific research institutes are focused on meadows and pastures, horticuwture and subtropicaw crops, green vegetabwes, viticuwture and wine-making, cotton growing and medicinaw pwants.[175] In some areas it is profitabwe to grow grain, potatoes, sugar beets, cotton[176] and tobacco. Livestock, dairy products, and wine and spirits are awso important farm products. The Caspian fishing industry concentrates on de dwindwing stocks of sturgeon and bewuga. In 2002 de Azerbaijani merchant marine had 54 ships.[177]

Some products previouswy imported from abroad have begun to be produced wocawwy. Among dem are Coca-Cowa by Coca-Cowa Bottwers LTD, beer by Baki-Kastew, parqwet by Nehir and oiw pipes by EUPEC Pipe Coating Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.[178]

Tourism is an important part of de economy of Azerbaijan. The country was a weww-known tourist spot in de 1980s. However, de faww of de Soviet Union, and de Nagorno-Karabakh War during de 1990s, damaged de tourist industry and de image of Azerbaijan as a tourist destination, uh-hah-hah-hah.[179]

It was not untiw de 2000s dat de tourism industry began to recover, and de country has since experienced a high rate of growf in de number of tourist visits and overnight stays.[180] In de recent years, Azerbaijan has awso become a popuwar destination for rewigious, spa, and heawf care tourism.[181] During winter, de Shahdag Mountain Resort offers skiing wif state of de art faciwities.

The government of Azerbaijan has set de devewopment of Azerbaijan as an ewite tourist destination as a top priority. It is a nationaw strategy to make tourism a major, if not de singwe wargest, contributor to de Azerbaijani economy.[182] These activities are reguwated by de Ministry of Cuwture and Tourism of Azerbaijan. There are 63 countries which have visa-free score.[183] E-visa[184] – for a visit of foreigners of visa-reqwired countries to de Repubwic of Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah.

Azerbaijan pwaced among top ten countries due to de strongest growf in visitor exports in years of 2010-2016 according to de report prepared by de Worwd Travew and Tourism Counciw.[186] As weww as, Azerbaijan is at de first pwace (46.1%) among de countries which have de fastest devewoping travew and tourism economies in addition wif strong inbound internationaw visitor spending wast year.[187]

The convenient wocation of Azerbaijan on de crossroad of major internationaw traffic arteries, such as de Siwk Road and de souf–norf corridor, highwights de strategic importance of transportation sector for de country's economy.[188] The transport sector in de country incwudes roads, raiwways, aviation, and maritime transport.

Azerbaijan is awso an important economic hub in de transportation of raw materiaws. The Baku–Tbiwisi–Ceyhan pipewine (BTC) became operationaw in May 2006 and extends more dan 1,774 kiwometers drough de territories of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. The BTC is designed to transport up to 50 miwwion tons of crude oiw annuawwy and carries oiw from de Caspian Sea oiwfiewds to gwobaw markets.[189] The Souf Caucasus Pipewine, awso stretching drough de territory of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, became operationaw at de end of 2006 and offers additionaw gas suppwies to de European market from de Shah Deniz gas fiewd. Shah Deniz is expected to produce up to 296 biwwion cubic meters of naturaw gas per year.[190] Azerbaijan awso pways a major rowe in de EU-sponsored Siwk Road Project.

In 2002, de Azerbaijani government estabwished de Ministry of Transport wif a broad range of powicy and reguwatory functions. In de same year, de country became a member of de Vienna Convention on Road Traffic.[191] The highest priority being; upgrading de transport network and transforming transportation services into one of de key comparative advantages of de country, as dis wouwd be highwy conducive to de devewopment of oder sectors of de economy.

In 2012, de construction of Kars–Tbiwisi–Baku raiwway expected to provide transportation between Asia and Europe drough connecting de raiwways of China and Kazakhstan in de east wif Turkey's Marmaray to de European raiwway system in de west. Broad-gauge raiwways in 2010 stretched for 2,918 km (1,813 mi) and ewectrified raiwways numbered 1,278 km (794 mi). By 2010, dere were 35 airports and one hewiport.[93]

In de 21st century, a new oiw and gas boom hewped to improve de situation in Azerbaijan's science and technowogy sectors, and de government waunched a campaign aimed at modernization and innovation. The government estimates dat profits from de information technowogy and communication industry wiww grow and become comparabwe wif dose from oiw production, uh-hah-hah-hah.[192]

Azerbaijan has a warge and steadiwy growing Internet sector, mostwy uninfwuenced by de gwobaw financiaw crisis; rapid growf is forecast for at weast five more years.[193]

The country has awso been making progress in devewoping its tewecoms sector. The Ministry of Communications & Information Technowogies (MCIT), as weww as being an operator drough its rowe in Aztewekom, is bof a powicy-maker and reguwator. Pubwic pay phones are avaiwabwe for wocaw cawws and reqwire de purchase of a token from de tewephone exchange or some shops and kiosks. Tokens awwow a caww of indefinite duration, uh-hah-hah-hah. As of 2009[update], dere were 1,397,000 main tewephone wines[194] and 1,485,000 internet users.[195] There are four GSM providers: Azerceww, Bakceww, Azerfon (Nar Mobiwe), Nakhtew mobiwe network operators and one CDMA.

In de 21st century a number of prominent Azerbaijani geodynamics and geotectonics scientists, inspired by de fundamentaw works of Ewchin Khawiwov and oders, designed hundreds of eardqwake prediction stations and eardqwake-resistant buiwdings dat now constitute de buwk of The Repubwican Center of Seismic Service.[196][197][198]

The Azerbaijan Nationaw Aerospace Agency waunched its first satewwite AzerSat 1 into orbit on 7 February 2013 from Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana at orbitaw positions 46° East.[199][200][201] The satewwite wiww cover Europe and significant part of Asian countries and Africa and wiww have transmission for TV, radio broadcasting and de internet.[202] The waunch of its own satewwite on orbit is Azerbaijan's first action in reawizing prospective projects to turn itsewf into a country wif a space industry.[203][204]

From de totaw popuwation of 9.705. 600 peopwe as of de beginning of 2016, nearwy 53,1% was urban popuwation, de remaining 46,9% was de ruraw popuwation, uh-hah-hah-hah. 50,2% of de totaw popuwation were femawe.The sex ratio for totaw popuwation in dat year was derefore 0.99 mawes per femawe.[205]

The 2011 popuwation growf-rate was 0.85%, compared to 1.09% worwdwide.[93] A significant factor restricting de popuwation growf is a high wevew of migration, uh-hah-hah-hah. In 2011 Azerbaijan saw migration of −1.14/1,000 peopwe.[93]

Around 98% of de popuwation are Muswims.[216] 85% of de Muswims are Shia Muswims and 15% Sunni Muswims,[217] and de Repubwic of Azerbaijan has de second highest Shia popuwation percentage in de worwd.[218] Oder faids are practised by de country's various ednic groups. Under articwe 48 of its Constitution, Azerbaijan is a secuwar state and ensures rewigious freedom. In a 2006–2008 Gawwup poww, onwy 21% of respondents from Azerbaijan stated dat rewigion is an important part of deir daiwy wives. This makes Azerbaijan de weast rewigious Muswim-majority country in de worwd.[219]

A rewativewy high percentage of Azerbaijanis have obtained some form of higher education, most notabwy in scientific and technicaw subjects.[230] In de Soviet era, witeracy and average education wevews rose dramaticawwy from deir very wow starting point, despite two changes in de standard awphabet, from Perso-Arabic script to Latin in de 1920s and from Roman to Cyriwwic in de 1930s. According to Soviet data, 100 percent of mawes and femawes (ages nine to forty-nine) were witerate in 1970.[230] According to de United Nations Devewopment Program Report 2009, de witeracy rate in Azerbaijan is 99.5 percent.[231]

Since independence, one of de first waws dat Azerbaijan's Parwiament passed to disassociate itsewf from de Soviet Union was to adopt a modified-Latin awphabet to repwace Cyriwwic.[232] Oder dan dat de Azerbaijani system has undergone wittwe structuraw change. Initiaw awterations have incwuded de reestabwishment of rewigious education (banned during de Soviet period) and curricuwum changes dat have reemphasized de use of de Azerbaijani wanguage and have ewiminated ideowogicaw content. In addition to ewementary schoows, de education institutions incwude dousands of preschoows, generaw secondary schoows, and vocationaw schoows, incwuding speciawized secondary schoows and technicaw schoows. Education drough de eighf grade is compuwsory.

The cuwture of Azerbaijan has devewoped as a resuwt of many infwuences. Today, nationaw traditions are weww preserved in de country despite Western infwuences, incwuding gwobawized consumer cuwture. Some of de main ewements of de Azerbaijani cuwture are: music, witerature, fowk dances and art, cuisine, architecture, cinematography and Novruz Bayram. The watter is derived from de traditionaw cewebration of de New Year in de ancient Iranian rewigion of Zoroastrianism. Novruz is a famiwy howiday.[233]

The profiwe of Azerbaijan's popuwation consists, as stated above, of Azerbaijanis, as weww as oder nationawities or ednic groups, compactwy wiving in various areas of de country. Azerbaijani nationaw and traditionaw dresses are de Chokha and Papakhi. There are radio broadcasts in Russian, Georgian, Kurdish, Lezgian and Tawysh wanguages, which are financed from de state budget.[207] Some wocaw radio stations in Bawakan and Khachmaz organize broadcasts in Avar and Tat.[207] In Baku severaw newspapers are pubwished in Russian, Kurdish (Dengi Kurd), Lezgian (Samur) and Tawysh wanguages.[207] Jewish society "Sokhnut" pubwishes de newspaper Aziz.[207]

Mugham, meykhana and ashiq art are among de many musicaw traditions of Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah. Mugham is usuawwy a suite wif poetry and instrumentaw interwudes. When performing mugham, de singers have to transform deir emotions into singing and music. In contrast to de mugham traditions of Centraw Asian countries, Azerbaijani mugham is more free-form and wess rigid; it is often compared to de improvised fiewd of jazz.[238]UNESCO procwaimed de Azerbaijani mugham tradition a Masterpiece of de Oraw and Intangibwe Heritage of Humanity on 7 November 2003. Meykhana is a kind of traditionaw Azerbaijani distinctive fowk unaccompanied song, usuawwy performed by severaw peopwe improvising on a particuwar subject.

Ashiq combines poetry, storytewwing, dance and vocaw and instrumentaw music into a traditionaw performance art dat stands as a symbow of Azerbaijani cuwture. It is a mystic troubadour or travewing bard who sings and pways de saz. This tradition has its origin in de Shamanistic bewiefs of ancient Turkic peopwes.[239] Ashiqs' songs are semi-improvised around common bases. Azerbaijan's ashiq art was incwuded in de wist of Intangibwe Cuwturaw Heritage by de UNESCO on 30 September 2009.[240]

There are dozens of Azerbaijani fowk dances. They are performed at formaw cewebrations and de dancers wear nationaw cwodes wike de Chokha, which is weww-preserved widin de nationaw dances. Most dances have a very fast rhydm. The nationaw dance shows de characteristics of de Azerbaijani nation, uh-hah-hah-hah.

Among de medievaw audors born widin de territoriaw wimits of modern Azerbaijani Repubwic was Persian poet and phiwosopher Nizami, cawwed Ganjavi after his pwace of birf, Ganja, who was de audor of de Khamseh ("The Quintupwet"), composed of five romantic poems, incwuding "The Treasure of Mysteries," "Khosrow and Shīrīn," and "Leywi and Mejnūn, uh-hah-hah-hah."[245]

The earwiest known figure in Azerbaijani witerature was Izzeddin Hasanogwu, who composed a divan consisting of Persian and Turkic ghazaws.[246][247] In Persian ghazaws he used his pen-name, whiwe his Turkic ghazaws were composed under his own name of Hasanoghwu.[246]

The Book of Dede Korkut consists of two manuscripts copied in de 16f century,[255] was not written earwier dan de 15f century.[256][257] It is a cowwection of 12 stories refwecting de oraw tradition of Oghuz nomads.[257] The 16f-century poet, Muhammed Fuzuwi produced his timewess phiwosophicaw and wyricaw Qazaws in Arabic, Persian, and Azerbaijani. Benefiting immensewy from de fine witerary traditions of his environment, and buiwding upon de wegacy of his predecessors, Fizuwi was destined to become de weading witerary figure of his society. His major works incwude The Divan of Ghazaws and The Qasidas. In de same century, Azerbaijani witerature furder fwourished wif de devewopment of Ashik (Azerbaijani: Aşıq) poetic genre of bards. During de same period, under de pen-name of Khatāī (Arabic: خطائی‎‎ for sinner) Shah Ismaiw I wrote about 1400 verses in Azerbaijani,[258] which were water pubwished as his Divan. A uniqwe witerary stywe known as qoshma (Azerbaijani: qoşma for improvization) was introduced in dis period, and devewoped by Shah Ismaiw and water by his son and successor, Shah Tahmasp I.

Modern witerature in Azerbaijan is based on de Shirvani diawect mainwy, whiwe in Iran it is based on de Tabrizi one. The first newspaper in Azerbaijani, Akinchi was pubwished in 1875. In de mid-19f century, it was taught in de schoows of Baku, Ganja, Shaki, Tbiwisi, and Yerevan. Since 1845, it has awso been taught in de University of Saint Petersburg in Russia.

Azerbaijanis have a rich and distinctive cuwture, a major part of which is decorative and appwied art. This form of art is represented by a wide range of handicrafts, such as chasing, jewewer, engraving in metaw, carving in wood, stone and bone, carpet-making, wasing, pattern weaving and printing, knitting and embroidery. Each of dese types of decorative art, evidence of de endowments of de Azerbaijan nation, is very much in favor here. Many interesting facts pertaining to de devewopment of arts and crafts in Azerbaijan were reported by numerous merchants, travewers and dipwomats who had visited dese pwaces at different times.

Azerbaijan has been since de ancient times known as a center of a warge variety of crafts. The archeowogicaw dig on de territory of Azerbaijan testifies to de weww devewoped agricuwture, stock raising, metaw working, pottery, ceramics, and carpet-weaving dat date as far back as to de 2nd miwwennium BC. Archeowogicaw sites in Dashbuwaq, Hasansu, Zayamchai, and Tovuzchai uncovered from de BTC pipewine have reveawed earwy Iron Age artifacts.[262]

Azerbaijani carpets can be categorized under severaw warge groups and a muwtitude of subgroups. Scientific research of de Azerbaijani carpet is connected wif de name of Latif Kerimov, a prominent scientist and artist. It was his cwassification dat rewated de four warge groups of carpets wif de four geographicaw zones of Azerbaijan, Guba-Shirvan, Ganja-Kazakh, Karabakh and Tabriz.[263]

The traditionaw cuisine is famous for an abundance of vegetabwes and greens used seasonawwy in de dishes. Fresh herbs, incwuding mint, ciwantro (coriander), diww, basiw, parswey, tarragon, weeks, chives, dyme, marjoram, green onion, and watercress, are very popuwar and often accompany main dishes on de tabwe. Cwimatic diversity and fertiwity of de wand are refwected in de nationaw dishes, which are based on fish from de Caspian Sea, wocaw meat (mainwy mutton and beef), and an abundance of seasonaw vegetabwes and greens. Saffron-rice pwov is de fwagship food in Azerbaijan and bwack tea is de nationaw beverage.[265] Azerbaijanis often use traditionaw armudu (pear-shaped) gwass as dey have very strong tea cuwture.[266][267] Popuwar traditionaw dishes incwude bozbash (wamb soup dat exists in severaw regionaw varieties wif de addition of different vegetabwes), qwtab (fried turnover wif a fiwwing of greens or minced meat) and dushbara (sort of dumpwings of dough fiwwed wif ground meat and fwavor).

Among oder architecturaw treasures are Quadranguwar Castwe in Mardakan, Parigawa in Yukhary Chardagwar, a number of bridges spanning de Aras River, and severaw mausoweums. In de 19f and earwy 20f centuries, wittwe monumentaw architecture was created, but distinctive residences were buiwt in Baku and ewsewhere. Among de most recent architecturaw monuments, de Baku subways are noted for deir wavish decor.[271]

Azerbaijani art incwudes one of de owdest art objects in de worwd, which were discovered as Gamigaya Petrogwyphs in de territory of Ordubad Rayon are dated back to de 1st to 4f centuries BC. About 1500 diswodged and carved rock paintings wif images of deer, goats, buwws, dogs, snakes, birds, fantastic beings and awso peopwe, carriages and various symbows had been found out on basawt rocks.[274] Norwegian ednographer and adventurer Thor Heyerdahw was convinced dat peopwe from de area went to Scandinavia in about 100 AD and took deir boat buiwding skiwws wif dem, and transmuted dem into de Viking boats in Nordern Europe.[275][276]

The fiwm industry in Azerbaijan dates back to 1898. In fact, Azerbaijan was among de first countries invowved in cinematography.[279] Therefore, it's not surprising dat dis apparatus soon showed up in Baku – at de start of de 20f century, dis bay town on de Caspian was producing more dan 50 percent of de worwd's suppwy of oiw. Just wike today, de oiw industry attracted foreigners eager to invest and to work.[280] In 1919, during de Azerbaijan Democratic Repubwic, a documentary The Cewebration of de Anniversary of Azerbaijani Independence was fiwmed on Azerbaijan's independence day, 28 May, and premiered in June 1919 at severaw deatres in Baku.[281] After de Soviet power was estabwished in 1920, Nariman Narimanov, Chairman of de Revowutionary Committee of Azerbaijan, signed a decree nationawizing Azerbaijan's cinema. This awso infwuenced de creation of Azerbaijani animation.[281]

In 1991, after Azerbaijan gained its independence from de Soviet Union, de first Baku Internationaw Fiwm Festivaw East-West was hewd in Baku. In December 2000, de former President of Azerbaijan, Heydar Awiyev, signed a decree procwaiming 2 August to be de professionaw howiday of fiwmmakers of Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah. Today Azerbaijani fiwmmakers are again deawing wif issues simiwar to dose faced by cinematographers prior to de estabwishment of de Soviet Union in 1920. Once again, bof choice of content and sponsorship of fiwms are wargewy weft up to de initiative of de fiwmmaker.[279]

The Constitution of Azerbaijan cwaims to guarantee freedom of speech, but dis is denied in practice. After severaw years of decwine in press and media freedom, in 2014 de media environment in Azerbaijan deteriorated fast under a governmentaw campaign to siwence any opposition and criticism, even whiwe de country wed de Committee of Ministers of de Counciw of Europe (May–November 2014). Spurious wegaw charges and impunity in viowence against journawists have remained de norm.[282] Aww foreign broadcasts are banned in de country.[283]

During de wast few years, dree journawists were kiwwed and severaw prosecuted in triaws described as unfair by internationaw human rights organizations. Azerbaijan has de biggest number of journawists imprisoned in Europe and Centraw Asia in 2015, according to de Committee to Protect Journawists, and is de 5f most censored country in de worwd, ahead of Iran and China.[286]

A report by an Amnesty Internationaw researcher in October 2015 points to '...de severe deterioration of human rights in Azerbaijan over de past few years. Sadwy Azerbaijan has been awwowed to get away wif unprecedented wevews of repression and in de process awmost wipe out its civiw society'.[287] Amnesty's 2015/16 annuaw report[288] on de country stated ' ... persecution of powiticaw dissent continued. Human rights organizations remained unabwe to resume deir work. At weast 18 prisoners of conscience remained in detention at de end of de year. Reprisaws against independent journawists and activists persisted bof in de country and abroad, whiwe deir famiwy members awso faced harassment and arrests. Internationaw human rights monitors were barred and expewwed from de country. Reports of torture and oder iww-treatment persisted.'

The Guardian reported 9-4-17: "Azerbaijan’s ruwing ewite operated a secret $2.9bn (£2.2bn) scheme to pay prominent Europeans, buy wuxury goods and waunder money drough a network of opaqwe British companies, an investigation by de Guardian reveaws. Leaked data shows dat de Azerbaijani weadership, accused of seriaw human rights abuses, systemic corruption and rigging ewections, made more dan 16,000 covert payments from 2012 to 2014. Some of dis money went to powiticians and journawists, as part of an internationaw wobbying operation to defwect criticism of Azerbaijan’s president, Iwham Awiyev, and to promote a positive image of his oiw-rich country. There is no suggestion dat aww de recipients were aware of de originaw source of de money. It arrived via a disguised route."

Backgammon awso pways a major rowe in Azerbaijani cuwture.[295] The game is very popuwar in Azerbaijan and is widewy pwayed among de wocaw pubwic.[296] There are awso different variations of backgammon devewoped and anawyzed by Azerbaijani experts.[297]

^Corneww, Svante E. (2010). Azerbaijan Since Independence. M.E. Sharpe. pp. 165, 284. Indicative of generaw regionaw trends and a naturaw reemergence of previouswy oppressed rewigious identity, an increasingwy popuwar ideowogicaw basis for de pursuit of powiticaw objectives has been Iswam.... The government, for its part, has shown an officiaw commitment to Iswam by buiwding mosqwes and respecting Iswamic vawues... Unofficiaw Iswamic groups sought to use aspects of Iswam to mobiwize de popuwation and estabwish de foundations for a future powiticaw struggwe.... Unwike Turkey, Azerbaijan does not have de powerfuw ideowogicaw wegacy of secuwarism... de confwict wif Armenia has bred frustration dat is increasingwy being answered by a combined Iswamic and nationawist sentiment, especiawwy among younger peopwe... Aww major powiticaw forces are committed to secuwarism and are based, if anyding, on a nationawist agenda.

^Neverdewess, "despite being one of de chief vassaws of Sasanian Shahanshah, de Awbanian king had onwy a sembwance of audority, and de Sassanid marzban (miwitary governor) hewd most civiw, rewigious, and miwitary audority.

^Yiwmaz, Harun (2015). Nationaw Identities in Soviet Historiography: The Rise of Nations Under Stawin. Routwedge. p. 21. ISBN978-1317596646. On May 27, de Democratic Repubwic of Azerbaijan (DRA) was decwared wif Ottoman miwitary support. The ruwers of de DRA refused to identify demsewves as [Transcaucasian] Tatar, which dey rightfuwwy considered to be a Russian cowoniaw definition, uh-hah-hah-hah.... Neighboring Iran did not wewcome de DRA's adoptation of de name of "Azerbaijan" for de country because it couwd awso refer to Iranian Azerbaijan and impwied a territoriaw cwaim.

^Bardowd, Vasiwy (1963). Sochineniya, vow II/1. Moscow. p. 706. (...) whenever it is necessary to choose a name dat wiww encompass aww regions of de Repubwic of Azerbaijan, name Arran can be chosen, uh-hah-hah-hah. But de term Azerbaijan was chosen because when de Azerbaijan repubwic was created, it was assumed dat dis and de Persian Azerbaijan wiww be one entity, because de popuwation of bof has a big simiwarity. On dis basis, de word Azerbaijan was chosen, uh-hah-hah-hah. Of course right now when de word Azerbaijan is used, it has two meanings as Persian Azerbaijan and as a repubwic, its confusing and a qwestion rises as to which Azerbaijan is tawked about.

^ abcRezvani, Babak (2014). Edno-territoriaw confwict and coexistence in de caucasus, Centraw Asia and Fereydan: academisch proefschrift. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. p. 356. ISBN978-9048519286. The region to de norf of de river Araxes was not cawwed Azerbaijan prior to 1918, unwike de region in nordwestern Iran dat has been cawwed since so wong ago.

^Fragner, B.G. (2001). Soviet Nationawism: An Ideowogicaw Legacy to de Independent Repubwics of Centraw Asia. I.B. Tauris and Company. pp. 13–32. In de post Iswamic sense, Arran and Shirvan are often distinguished, whiwe in de pre-Iswamic era, Arran or de western Caucasian Awbania roughwy corresponds to de modern territory of de Repubwic of Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah. In de Soviet era, in a breadtaking manipuwation, historicaw Azerbaijan (nordwestern Iran) was reinterpreted as "Souf Azerbaijan" in order for de Soviets to way territoriaw cwaim on historicaw Azerbaijan proper which is wocated in modern-day nordwestern Iran, uh-hah-hah-hah.

^Hewsen, Robert H. (2001). Armenia: a Historicaw Atwas. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 32–33, map 19 (shows de territory of modern Nagorno-Karabakh as part of de Orontids' Kingdom of Armenia).

^Wawker, Christopher J. (1980). Armenia, de survivaw of a nation. Croom Hewm. p. 45. Tsitsianov next moved against de semi-independent Iranian khanates. On de dinnest of pretexts he captured de Muswim town of Gandja, de seat of Iswamic wearning in de Caucasus (...)

^Saparov, Arsène (2014). From Confwict to Autonomy in de Caucasus: The Soviet Union and de Making of Abkhazia, Souf Ossetia and Nagorno Karabakh. Routwedge. ISBN978-1317637837. Even dough dese principawities [de khanates] had not been under Iranian suzerainty since de assassination of Nadir Shah in 1747, dey were traditionawwy considered an inawienabwe part of Iranian domains. (...) To de semi-independent Caucasian principawities de appearance of de new Great Power (...)

^Barker, Adewe Marie; Grant, Bruce (2010). The Russia Reader: History, Cuwture, Powitics. Duke University Press. p. 253. ISBN978-0822346487. But dey were rewativewy more accessibwe given de organization of smaww, centrawized, semi-independent khanates dat functioned drough de decwine of Iranian ruwe after de deaf of Nadir Shah in de mid-eighteenf century (...)

^Avery, Peter; Hambwy, Gavin (1991). The Cambridge History of Iran. Cambridge University Press. p. 126. ISBN978-0-521-20095-0. Agha Muhammad Khan couwd now turn to de restoration of de outwying provinces of de Safavid kingdom. Returning to Tehran in de spring of 1795, he assembwed a force of some 60,000 cavawry and infantry and in Shawwaw Dhuw-Qa'da/May, set off for Azarbaijan, intending to conqwer de country between de rivers Aras and Kura, formerwy under Safavid controw. This region comprised a number of khanates of which de most important was Qarabagh, wif its capitaw at Shusha; Ganja, wif its capitaw of de same name; Shirvan across de Kura, wif its capitaw at Shamakhi; and to de norf-west, on bof banks of de Kura, Christian Georgia (Gurjistan), wif its capitaw at Tifwis.

^Cronin, Stephanie, ed. (2013). Iranian-Russian Encounters: Empires and Revowutions since 1800. Routwedge. p. 63. ISBN978-0415624336. Perhaps de most important wegacy of Yermowov was his intention from earwy on to prepare de ground for de conqwest of de remaining khanates under Iranian ruwe and to make de River Aras de new border. (...) Anoder provocative action by Yermowov was de Russian occupation of de nordern shore of Lake Gokcha (Sivan) in de Khanate of Iravan in 1825. A cwear viowation of Gowestan, dis action was de most significant provocation by de Russian side. The Lake Gokcha occupation cwearwy showed dat it was Russia and not Iran which initiated hostiwities and breached Gowestan, and dat Iran was weft wif no choice but to come up wif a proper response.

^Dowwing, Timody C., ed. (2015). Russia at War: From de Mongow Conqwest to Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Beyond. ABC-CLIO. p. 729. ISBN978-1598849486. In May 1826, Russia derefore occupied Mirak, in de Erivan khanate, in viowation of de Treaty of Guwistan, uh-hah-hah-hah.

^Russia and a Divided Azerbaijan: A Borderwand in Transition, by Tadeusz Świętochowski, Cowumbia University Press, 1995, p. 66

^Smif, Michaew (Apriw 2001). "Anatomy of Rumor: Murder Scandaw, de Musavat Party and Narrative of de Russian Revowution in Baku, 1917–1920". Journaw of Contemporary History. 36 (2): 228. doi:10.1177/002200940103600202. The resuwts of de March events were immediate and totaw for de Musavat. Severaw hundreds of its members were kiwwed in de fighting; up to 12,000 Muswim civiwians perished; dousands of oders fwed Baku in a mass exodus

^Minahan, James B. Miniature Empires: A Historicaw Dictionary of de Newwy Independent States. p. 22. ISBN0-313-30610-9. The tensions and fighting between de Azerbaijanis and de Armenians in de federation cuwminated in de massacre of some 12,000 Azerbaijanis in Baku by radicaw Armenians and Bowshevik troops in March 1918

^Michaew E. Meeker, "The Dede Korkut Edic", Internationaw Journaw of Middwe East Studies, Vow. 24, No. 3 (Aug. 1992), 395–417. excerpt: The Book of Dede Korkut is an earwy record of oraw Turkic fowktawes in Anatowia, and as such, one of de mydic charters of Turkish nationawist ideowogy. The owdest versions of de Book of Dede Korkut consist of two manuscripts copied in de 16f century. The twewve stories dat are recorded in dese manuscripts are bewieved to be derived from a cycwe of stories and songs circuwating among Turkic peopwes wiving in nordeastern Anatowia and nordwestern Azerbaijan, uh-hah-hah-hah. According to Lewis (1974), an owder substratum of dese oraw traditions dates to confwicts between de ancient Oghuz and deir Turkish rivaws in Centraw Asia (de Pecheneks and de Kipchaks), but dis substratum has been cwoded in references to de 14f-century campaigns of de Akkoyunwu Confederation of Turkic tribes against de Georgians, de Abkhaz, and de Greeks in Trebizond. Such stories and songs wouwd have emerged no earwier dan de beginning of de 13f century, and de written versions dat have reached us wouwd have been composed no water dan de beginning of de 15f century. By dis time, de Turkic peopwes in qwestion had been in touch wif Iswamic civiwization for severaw centuries, had come to caww demsewves "Turcoman" rader dan "Oghuz," had cwose associations wif sedentary and urbanized societies, and were participating in Iswamized regimes dat incwuded nomads, farmers, and townsmen, uh-hah-hah-hah. Some had abandoned deir nomadic way of wife awtogeder.

^Cemaw Kafadar(1995), "in Between Two Worwds: Construction of de Ottoman states", University of Cawifornia Press, 1995. Excerpt: "It was not earwier dan de fifteenf century. Based on de fact dat de audor is buttering up bof de Akkoyunwu and Ottoman ruwers, it has been suggested dat de composition bewongs to someone wiving in de undefined border region wands between de two states during de reign of Uzun Hassan (1466–78). G. Lewis on de hand dates de composition "fairwy earwy in de 15f century at weast."